PADI Course syllabus

[BlueDevil]

I am trying to find the PADI course syllabus for the Open Water Course (or in fact the Junior Open Water course if the syllabus is any different to the adult version). I looked on the PADI website but all I could find was a very brief outline of the course which gave virtually no detail (eg. I want details of theory lesson topics covered, required water skills etc). Maybe the info is there, but I couldn't find it? If you know of anywhere on the net that i can get this info I would be grateful. The sort of thing I am looking for would be the equivalent of the info on the BSAC website: http://www.bsac.org/techserv/tecpuba10.htm

Thanks for any help,

Dave

PS I am trying to compare courses from different training agencies to see which may suit my daughter best. Also trying to guage whether she is ready to undertake a course.

 

[JustinW]

I think others will agree, but agency doesn't have much to do with it, and the instructor really determines the syllubus (to an extent). Talk to your different potential instructors and get a feel for them, go with the instructor you have the most confidence in.

 

[BlueDevil]

Justin, Thanks for your reply, it is appreciated. Perhaps I should explain myself further. My daughter has been snorkelling since she was 5 and has had several sessions in a pool on scuba. She is quite competant at her skills such as reg retrieval, mask clearing, air sharing, and she is getting the hang of buoyancy control. She has also done three open water dives, but to a max depth of 2.5m and in a very safe environment. I am considering putting her through a course, but don't want to rush things at the age of eleven.

I am a qualified BSAC diver and can put her through a BSAC course myself, and this would be a very cheap option! I would certainly demand a high level of skills to pass her. However, I am not sure that teaching your own children is necessarily the best way to go????? Sometimes kids seem to respond better to the authority of a stranger. And to be honest i haven't run any courses for kids, so maybe someone with more experience with kids would have a better approach to teaching theory such as pressure effects and physiology, etc which some kids may struggle to understand. We are going to Fiji in a few months and the resort we will be at runs PADI courses (including the Junior Open Water). This would be an ideal opportunity to do the PADI course if we decide to go in that direction (not that I wouldn't still spend a lot of time with her afterwards going through the typical BSAC training).

There are two main issues then:

- do I train her myself or let someone else do it
- am I happy with the PADI syllabus, in comparison to BSAC

or, maybe we should simply wait until she is a bit older anyway!

 

[scubamad]

Hi Bluedevil

This is the link to PADI http://www.padi.com/english/common/courses/rec/begin/openwater.asp

If you want to know what skills your daughter would be taught it may be easier to contact your local dive club or see if you can get hold of a second hand ow dive manual.

I am sure your daughter will love the experience!!

Best wishes

 

[BlueDevil]

Hi Bluedevil

This is the link to PADI http://www.padi.com/english/common/courses/rec/begin/openwater.asp

If you want to know what skills your daughter would be taught it may be easier to contact your local dive club or see if you can get hold of a second hand ow dive manual.

I am sure your daughter will love the experience!!

Best wishes

Thanks Wendy, I think you are probably right in suggesting getting hold of a copy of the ow dive manual. The info on the PADI web site is incredibly brief and really tells you very little (especially if you compare it to the info on the BSAC link I posted above).

And I think you are also right in saying my daughter will love the experience. Last year she did a dive on a beautiful coral reef in Vanuatu that was packed with fishlife. Not bad for her first ever scuba dive!! (A hell of a lot better than my first scuba dive!) And the best part of it was it was the reef was only about 5m from shore, and only 2m deep - the perfect safe environment for her first dive.

 

[Diversauras]

Interesting dilemma. I have some BSAC background also and have been a NAUI instructor for nearly 25 years. If you run your daughter through the PADI (or any other short) course so you can all enjoy Fiji, you should consider having her do a fill BSAC or ASAC course.

I take it you're in a small branch with you being the only instructor. I think the format for BSAC and other clubs is great and makes really good and capable divers.

 

[String]

Not sure how old your daughter is but for "official" BSAC training she has to be over 14.

 

[scubamad]

Not sure how old your daughter is but for "official" BSAC training she has to be over 14.

I think PADI is 10 or 12 for Junior OW.

 

[WileEDiver]

I think PADI is 10 or 12 for Junior OW.

It's 10. And to answer a question in the original posting, there is no difference in requirements between what a child and an adult must demonstrate (in classroom, pool, or open water). Just the maximum depth a 10-11 or 12-14 year old can dive (40' and 70' respectively) and student/instructor ratio is adjusted based on the number of under 15 year old divers in the class.

 

[Mako Mark]

blue devil,

are you an instructor??

If not, I highly reccommend that you do not attempt to teach your daughter to dive yourself. Get a professional to save you the grey hairs and avoid anyone getting hurt.